Robin Clare - Art | Illustration | Animation

“Robin Clare creates works of art with riffs on colour, rhythm and repetition of Dancehall, the dominant pop culture of her native island, Jamaica. Inspired by dancehall and the aesthetics of Jamaican party promotions, she produces a clash of hand-drawn typography, bold large-scale paintings, illustrations and hand-drawn animation. Referencing dance moves, risqué party names and the sexually provocative imagery surrounding the culture, Robin combines pop art, comic book, cinematic and advertising influences. In her paintings, she strives to represent a society that is imaginative, inventive, colourful, resilient and never shy of a likkle controversy.” - Jamaicans.com

DANCING WORDS VOL 3

This continuing series of paintings charts the growth of dancehall dances on the island of Jamaica.

The Caribbean island of Jamaica still feels the repercussions of wealth extracted during its formative years as a slave colony. In 2023 the majority of Jamaicans still struggle to keep their heads above water and provide for their families. Yet the cultural output of the island has been influencing global popular culture for decades, from reggae music to popular dance moves performed by superstars like Beyonce. My work celebrates and examines the value of this cultural capital.

Badda Wave, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Bogle Move, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Boom Pon It, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Butterfly, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Fabulous, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Fling Yu Shoulda, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Genna Bounce, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Godzilla, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Guilty, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Hot Wuk, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Kiss Mi Teet, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Pop Yuh Collar, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

DANCEHALL MASSIVE

in late 2019-2020, shortly before the pandemic I was awarded a studio residency by Firstdraft, Sydney. I used the time and extra space to expand on an idea I had for a large scale installation. Focusing on the very first dance drawing I did, ‘Dutty Wine’. I created dynamic 2-d figures by splicing paper cutouts created from of my dance illustration. I also designed and created a ‘Dancehall Throne’, constructed from cardboard, then painted and collaged with elements from my artwork archive.

The work explored ideas of identity and place using the dancehall figures as a proxy for the global Jamaican diaspora. Jamaica’s national identity, knotted so messily with the Commonwealth and British imperialism, comes with both confusion and a healthy dose of nationalism. For those citizens wanting to travel away from the island it’s been a bumpy road. In recent years we’ve watched the Windrush Generation scandal play out in the UK, the unjustified persecution of Jamaican citizens and Jamaican heritage in the UK & US justice system and the battle for Jamaicans to retain sovereignty over their own national resources, most notably in the Goat Island and ongoing Cockpit Country cases.

The work charts the course of Jamaican’s attempt to assimilate into other cultures in ‘acceptable’ ways. This began on the island under British rule and continued when Jamaican’s were invited over to the UK to continue as British citizens at the time of Jamaican Independence in 1962. But for many Jamaican’s, especially those of darker skin tones, no amount of trying would stop the tide of opposition to their presence exhibited through racism and exclusion. To illustrate this I used a warm white toned card to create my figures, the white to allude to assimilation and the warm tone to indicate an optimism and excitement in the adventure to come. The warmth also illustrates the resilience of Jamaican people whose unofficial motto is ‘Wi Little but Tallawah” which translates as we may be little but we are strong.

I then placed the figures on small mirrored tiles, like little floating islands. The figures reflected in the mirrored surface, our diaspora could see themselves and appreciate the value of their culture and unite to create a space that was their own unfamiliar foreign lands. The final act sees the figures burst into colours in open celebration, their floating tiles larger and united in geometric patterns. Representing the cultural enrichment that we as a tiny nation, along with it’s diaspora, have added to the world and in turn the way the world has embraced and celebrated our culture with us.

The addition of the Dancehall Throne and Soundsystem Speakers helps to illustrate elements of Jamaican popular culture and activate the space in which the figures are placed. The throne also references historical folk culture on Caribbean islands that usurped cultural elements from ‘the oppressors’ into folk dance traditions to secretly mock and take back power.

We as Jamaicans and it’s diaspora are but a small part of many islands of global diaspora culture that has enriched nations and allowed the world to be a more colourful and exciting place.

JAMAICA POP

Each painting tells a story based on Jamaica’s fast-paced entertainment industry: an ever-changing fame machine fueled by controversy and raw ambition, it oversees dramatic triumphs and equally dramatic falls.

Lawdamercy, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm

Sweet Kulcha, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm

Controversy, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm (Sold)

Unruly Youth, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm (Sold)

Media Masters, Acrylic & Gold Leaf on Cotton Rag, 38cm x 56.5cm

So She Like It, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm (Sold)

A WOMAN’S PLACE

A series of site and performance specific installations examining the role of women in Dancehall culture.

In 2018 I was invited to be part of a multi-disciplinary collaborative event at the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage by choreographer Erica Rae Smith-Gooden for the center’s Local Dance Commissioning Project. Early images of the piece were projected on the stage accompanied by a spoken word piece (starting point 15:00).

The piece was further finessed as an vinyl wall installation at Suite 66 in Sydney, Australia, with the title Stepping Into The Role.

DANCING WORDS VOL 2 - STYLISH MOVES

The Stylish Moves series is made up of paintings in acrylic and ink on paper depicting specific dances created by dancehall choreographer Latonya Style, who I have collaborated with on a series of how-to instructional booklets titled Stylish Moves.

Classified, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Cute Jook, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Determination, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Fantastic, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Flash It & Dash It, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Fling It Weh, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Flip Di Script, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Klassy, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Luvidubi, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Quality, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Trackle, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm

Pretty Wine, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

BULLS EYE

American culture has always influenced the island of Jamaica, just as Jamaican culture has in turn influenced American culture through fashion, dance styles and music. The Bulls Eye series of paintings explores the coming together of these two very different cultures through large scale romaticised cinema poster images taking inspiration from vintage comic book imagery and dancehall culture.

Paying homage to stories told to me by my grandparents and parents about childhoods spent eagerly anticipating the arrival of the latest comic book imports from the US, the series references a short run comic from the 1950's titled Bulls Eye by comic artist team Simon and Kirby. The comic followed the adventures of a western sharp shooter who also went by the name Bulls Eye.

The Youth, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm

Bang Bang, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm (Sold)

Bashment Uprising, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm

Boomshot, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm

Tropical Thunder, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm

Badda Den Dem, Acrylic on Cotton Rag, 50cm x 70cm (Sold)

DANCING WORDS VOL 1

The Dancing Words series illustrates popular dances that have developed alongside the genre of Jamaican dancehall music. The images combine line drawings of repeated figures illustrating the moves and hand painted text giving the title of the dance.

Jamaican dance styles have been influencing pop culture since the introduction of skanking in late 50's when rocksteady and ska music came onto the scene. The emergence of dancehall in the late 70's followed suit with fast moving riddims and lyrical stylings that allowed dancers and choreographers to become an important part of the business of dancehall. The new style was led by Jamaica's godfather of dance, Bogle. Soon artists like Elephant Man and Beenie Man were writing lyrics that introduced new dance moves. With almost every new tune there were new moves to perfect. Many of the dance moves like the Bogle, Willie Bounce and Dutty Wine have crossed over to mainstream pop culture around the world, especially within the hip hop scene.

Today Jamaican choreographers like Latonya Style and Kimiko Versatile and dance crews like Black Eagles and Elite team to name but a few, continue to enrich the genre with their creativity.

Dutty Wine, Acrylic & Ink on Cotton Rag, 53cm x 73cm (Sold)

Tek Weh Yuself, Acrylic & Ink on Cotton Rag, 53cm x 73cm (Sold)

Hot Patty Wine, Acrylic & Ink on Cotton Rag, 53cm x 73cm (Sold)

Paper Bag, Acrylic & Ink on Cotton Rag, 53cm x 73cm

Stop Watch Di Pumz, Acrylic & Ink on Cotton Rag, 53cm x 73cm

Row Di Boat, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Dip & Come Up, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Bogle, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Wacky Dip, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Willy Bounce, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Dutty Wine, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Parachute, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Nuh Linga, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Boasy Step, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm

Wine Yu Waist, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Butterfly, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Gully Creepa, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Signal Di Plane, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Thunder Clap, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Pon Di River, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm (Sold)

Dash Wata, Acrylic & Ink on Paper, 50cm x 40cm

JAMAICA PROJECT

Jamaica Project explores the way in which modern Jamaica expresses itself through its dancehall and party culture. The result is a combination of purely text-based work alongside sexually suggestive graphics inspired by imagery that surrounds the scene. The work shows a culture where women are highly sexualised within a very male dominated dancehall and party scene. An interesting commentary on the dichotomy of Jamaican women's place within society, which often sees women in roles of both breadwinner and sex object.

My painting style is directly inspired by the traditional Jamaican artisan skill of hand painted signage used in advertising. As you travel around the island there are hand painted signs on walls, bus shelters and entire sides of buildings with a variety of messages ranging from what goods you can buy at local stores and advertising for local businesses to directions and adverts for local go-go clubs. But, like everywhere else, with cheap production costs modern digitally-produced advertisements are fast becoming the dominant form of written and visual communication, transforming the way the culture shapes its messages and portrays itself to the world. My hand-painted style is a homage to sign painting which may one day become a thing of the past.

Combining my technique with messages surrounding Jamaica’s party scene opens a dialogue between the fast-paced world of the new and an often rose-tinted version of the old. Jamaica’s dancehall scene has come under fire in recent years for its inflammatory lyrics, while it is an integral and often controversial part of Jamaican culture offering escapism and entertainment to a population that experiences hardship on a daily basis.